We are Weather Guard Roofing in Edinburgh, when we come across flat roofing quotes we tend to advise our customers that considering a rubber roof namely EPDM is more cost effective than the original green mineral felted flat roof.
My question is what rubber roofing product is used in America? We have lots of rain here in Edinburgh, Scotland so we were wondering if you also use and promote EPDM rubber roofing.
https://www.weatherguardroofing.com/servicesedinburgh/flat-roofs/epdm
The EPDM single ply system has a few flaws. Mainly the seams. I see them fail quite often. People used to use gas and splice adhesive. Now they have tape primer which is like a combination of glue and cleaner which make for a better seam.
I think the best quality would come from a PVC system. The seams are actually stronger after wielded than the actual field sheet. The downside is that its expensive.
They have a product called TPO. Its heat welded like the PVC but the material cost is closer to EPDM. Considering that it comes in white and has a shorter labor time to install it vs epdm it is overall the best system in a majority of scenarios.
EPDM is extremely popular in the East and snow belt of the US. I’ve never seen another single ply last as long as EPDM. In the old days the rubber seems were glued which reacted to moisture and came apart. Now all of the EPDM seams are put together with pressure sensitive tape. The tape is great…it is even used with TPO in lieu of heat welding. Now, having said that, the US has quickly moved to thermoplastic sheets like TPO and PVC (more so with TPO).